Mesothelioma survival doubled by radiation prior to surgery

According to a clinical research, radiation prior to surgery doubles the survival rates from mesothelioma, compared to patients treated with surgery from the start. The results of this clinical research are published in the Journal of Thoracic Oncology. According to the lead author of the study, Dr. John Cho, principal investigator and radiation oncologist at Princess Margaret Cancer Center, University Health Network (UHN) and Assistant Professor, Department of Radiation Oncology at the University of Toronto, this study as a double role: from one hand, to treat patients more effectively and from the other hand, to improve life quality and increase potential survival rates. Another author of the study is Dr. Marc de Perrot, thoracic surgeon and Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of Toronto and leader of the Toronto Mesothelioma Research Program. “These research results offer real hope to mesothelioma patients who have too often been told in the past that they may have only six months to live”, says Dr. de Perrot.